IMCD has launched its Food & Nutrition Academy to focus on new trends in the market.

Growing consumer trends and advice to assist food retailers will be discussed at the annual AIFST convention in July.

The AIFST Convention is set to be the best yet with workshops, practical advice and opportunities for discussion.

After one year of development from chilli seed to full plant and fruiting we now can introduce to you the new hottest chilli in the world.

A pioneering Australian research alliance is leading the international race to break the world’s reliance on fish stocks for its supply of the vital dietary nutrient, long-chain omega-3.

A new scientific study has shown that walnuts have a combination of more healthful antioxidants and higher-quality antioxidants than any other nut.

“Swapping high-GI grains in our diet for an ancient, nutrient-packed ‘super seed’ may lead to better health for millions of Australians,” says Dr Joanna McMillan, registered nutritionist and accredited practising dietician.

The Wrigley Company has launched EXTRA Professional Calcium - a sugar-free gum that has been endorsed by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) to be fortified with calcium. Chewing just two pieces of the gum for 20 minutes is claimed to achieve 10% of the recommended dietary intake (RDI) of calcium.

New product activity levels in the ice-cream market are continuing to grow globally, with over 3300 launches recorded on the Innova Database in 2010. This is well up on 2009 levels, which in turn increased over 2008 and 2007 totals (www.innovadatabase.com). The majority of these introductions (over 80%) were take-home lines, with single-serve impulse products accounting for the remainder.

Cargill’s flavour business has made a significant investment in the liquid flavour-blending plant at its production facility in Grasse, France. The redevelopment has resulted in increased efficiencies in production flow.

For meat producers, cooling the meat once it is cooked poses a real challenge: conventional methods for cooling meat are very time consuming and do not easily enable producers to meet with ‘cook-cool’ guidelines to minimise the growth of any pathogens that may have survived the cooking process. In light of this, the meat industry continuously seeks rapid cooling methods.

Health claims continue to be a marketing strategy in many new food launches. Innova lists the Top Ten in Europe.

Nominations are open for the annual HACCP Conference Awards.

Domino celebrates 10,000th scribing laser installation.

Choice and the AFGC have called for the establishment of a supermarket ombudsman.